FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, August 6, 2025

TOBA Names Officers and Four New Trustees to Board

 

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association announced today the election of David O’Farrell as chairman of its Board of Trustees.  Also joining O’Farrell on the Board of Trustees to serve three-year terms as new members are Jonathan Green, Walker Hancock, Dean Reeves, and Adrian Wallace.

Re-elected to three-year terms were current trustees Billy Koch, Braxton Lynch, David O’Farrell, and Francis Vanlangendonck.

“I am honored to be re-elected as TOBA chairman,” said David O’Farrell. “Our board of trustees and the TOBA membership represent an important constituency, and we look forward to working with other industry stakeholders to improve the economics and integrity of the sport.”

Following its annual members meeting, the TOBA Board of Trustees met to elect officers for the association.  Officers named for 2025-2026 are: David O’Farrell, chairman, Garrett O’Rourke, vice-chairman, Dan Metzger, president; Brant Laue, secretary; and Jonathan Green, treasurer.

Brant Laue was re-elected chair of the American Graded Stakes Committee.  Also, the TOBA Board approved the appointment of Bret Jones and the reappointment of David O’Farrell to the American Graded Stakes Committee.  The 2025-2026 committee is comprised of TOBA members Brant Laue (chair), Walker Hancock, Bret Jones, Billy Koch, David O’Farrell, and Alex Solis II and racing officials Gatewood Bell (Keeneland), Dan Bork (Churchill Downs and Colonial Downs), Rick Hammerle (Kentucky Downs and 1ST Racing), Andrew Offerman (NYRA), and Tora Yamaguchi (Del Mar).

The Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA), based in Lexington, Ky., was formed in 1961 and is a national trade organization of leading Thoroughbred owners and breeders. TOBA’s mission is to improve the economics, integrity and pleasure of the sport on behalf of Thoroughbred owners and breeders. Projects managed by TOBA include the American Graded Stakes Committee, Claiming Crown, Ownership Seminars, Breeding, Conformation & Pedigree Clinics, US-Bred, TOBA Owners Concierge, OwnerView and the Sales Integrity Program. TOBA provides international representation for U.S. owners and breeders on the International Grading and Race Planning Advisory Committee, International Cataloguing Standards Committee and International Thoroughbred Breeders Federation. Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) is the charitable arm of TOBA. TOBA Media Properties, a subsidiary of TOBA, is the co-owner of BloodHorse LLC. TOBA is represented on the board of directors of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium as founding members.

Contact: Andy Schweigardt

Senior Director of Industry Relations & Development

(859) 277-5891

andys@toba.org